Light of Hope
by WolfieRed23
Summary: It has been 5 years since the Niebelheim Inccident. In Midgar, Tifa is running Seventh Heaven with her fellow survivor Kairi. Now, their old friend Cloud has arrived, their old enemy Sephiroth is alive and AVALANCHE is destroyed. Follow the unlikly group across the Planet to stop Sephiroth and save the Planet for the first time.
1. Chapter 1:Prolouge

** Okay this is my first time writing both a crossover and a Final Fantasy 7 story so give me a break. Hope you enjoy this but don't expect fast updates. I have 4 other stories going on and I have homework this summer but I'll do my absolute best. Enjoy!**

It was midday in Midgar. Inside a bar called Seventh Heaven, three girls could be seen. One was a 20 year old with dark brown hair and rust colored eyes. She wore a white tank, a mini skirt with a belt and suspenders, red boots, red and black gloves and a metal elbow guard on her left elbow. Her brown hair was long and had a tie at the end to form a dolphin-tail split. Her name was Tifa. The youngest girl was 4 and had short brown hair and kind brown eyes. She wore a pink dress with a yellow bow and brown boots with white socks. Her hair was cut in a bob with a straight fringe. Her name was Marlene. The last girl was 15 and had red hair and sapphire blue eyes. She wore a gray tank, a pink floral skirt that ended at her ankles and brown boots. Her hair just touched her shoulders and she had bangs just above her right eye. On her right wrist, she wore silver bracelets. On her left arm though, she wore three ribbons. The top one was pink, then a dark blue and finally a green-gray one. Her name was Kairi. The three girls were cleaning the counter when it began to down pour.

"Wow." Tifa said, "I haven't seen that much ran in Midgar in years." Kairi nodded and continued to clean. As she began to set up the tables that the drunks from last night sat at, a pain suddenly pierced her heart. She set down the tray she was holding and ran up the stairs, calling down,

"I'll be back in a minute!" Without another word, Kairi ran into her room and knelt beside her bed, her hands clasped together. She didn't understand why but the pain increased and tears began to pour down her cheeks as hard as the rain outside. She hadn't cried for 5 years. Not since Niebelheim. She shook her head. _Don't think about that. _She thought, _Not now. _Then, she knew what the pain was. "No." She whispered as the tears fell harder, "Don't let it be true. He can't be gone!" She kept praying the same thing over and over, hoping she was wrong. She didn't stop until she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up, expecting to see Tifa but instead she saw a man. He had long, spiky black hair with a strand hanging in front of his face and eyes as bright as the sky. Eyes infused with Mako. He wore the uniform of a SOLDIER 1st class and had a big sword on his back. The Buster Sword. Kairi's eyes widened and the tears fell harsher. It was true. He was dead. Kairi stood up and hugged him tightly. "Zack." She chocked out. Zack held her close and allowed her to cry her eyes out. Finally, she pulled away. "H-How?" She asked. He sighed and ruffled his hair before answering,

"I was gunned down by Shinra." Kairi was taken aback.

"But you work for them."

"Not anymore. For the past 5 years I've been a lab rat to them." Zack explained. Kairi looked down and asked,

"What about Cloud?" Zack hesitated before answering,

"He had the worst of the experiments and suffered Mako poisoning. I had to carry him around for the past year so we could escape."

"You mean he's alive?" Kairi asked, hope sparkling in her eyes.

"Yes." Zack smiled. Kairi sighed with relief when she heard,

"Kairi? You okay?" It was Tifa.

"Yeah I'm fine now." Kairi called back, "I'll be down in a minute." She turned back to Zack and mouthed 'I have to go.' Zack nodded in understanding and waved bye as he vanished. Kairi looked down at her ribbons. Each represented where she lived in her life…and a person she thought she lost. The pink represented Midgar, where she lived for the first 3 years of her life and befriended Aerith. Then, she moved to Gongaga, the dark blue, where she lived until she was 4 and where she had befriended Zack. Finally, she moved to Niebelheim, what her grandmother had told her was her hometown and the green-gray, and she had befriended her neighbors, Cloud and Tifa. Kairi shook her head and touched the dark blue one. Now she knew for sure. Zack was gone. Kairi shook her head and went back to the bar.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Tifa asked. Kairi nodded but whispered,

"Zack's dead." Tifa immediately hugged Kairi. The two had been together in Midgar for 5 years and Kairi had told Tifa all about her childhood, moving from place to place and never certain if she could keep the few friends she made. Tifa also knew that the Zack that had come to Niebelheim was the same Zack that Kairi had called her best friend in Gongaga. She may hate Zack but she knew he was important to Kairi.

"I'm so sorry Kai." She said, using the nickname all of Kairi's friends had given her.

"It's alright." Kairi whispered. On seeing the hug, Marlene walked over and hugged Kairi herself. Kairi smiled at the little girl. Marlene thought of Kairi as her big sister and hated seeing her upset.

"Are you okay?" Marlene asked. Kairi smiled and nodded. The three stayed like that until Tifa realized she had to go pick up some supplies from the store.

"I'll be back soon." She assured, "Watch the bar." The younger girls nodded. Once Tifa left, Marlene resumed her seat on the bar counter while Kairi continued to clean it. Nobody came to the bar and nobody, the members of AVALANCHE, came down. Kairi had told Barret at least a hundred times that if a Turk or another member of Shinra came by they would arrest them. Barret denied it so Kairi had resorted to threatening the big man. She knew how to use all the materia lying around the slums and she knew nobody wanted to get up close and personal with it. A half hour later, Tifa returned but she wasn't alone. Behind her was a man with spiky blonde hair and bright blue eyes. He was dressed as a SOLDIER 1st class and had the Buster Sword on his back. His eyes were brighter than the last time Kairi saw him, 5 years ago, but there was no mistaking who stood in the bar.

"Cloud…"

** Well that's it for now. I know it's unclear at moments but I'll be getting flashbacks in soon to explain everything. Again I'm new to this so if you want to help me out a little please do! Review and I'll try to update ASAP but I've got 4 other stories. Anyways, later and happy summer!**


	2. Chapter 2:Deals and Promises

**Note: Italics are thoughts and dreams.**

* * *

Kairi stared at Cloud while Tifa went to get Barrett. Cloud stared back.

"Is it really you?" Kairi whispered. Cloud nodded. Immediately, Kairi ran over and hugged Cloud tightly, tears already forming in her eyes. "I missed you so much." She whispered, "I thought you were dead." Hesitantly, Cloud hugged Kairi back.

"I'm not gonna die easily, Kairi." He said. Kairi nodded and let go. She wanted to hold on longer but something was different. This wasn't the Cloud she saw 5 years ago. He had even stopped using her nickname. She even felt Zack's confusion, how she didn't know. But this wasn't the Cloud who she saw in Nibelheim. So who was he? Just then, Tifa and Barrett came up from the hidden entrance to AVALANCHE. Barrett walked over to Cloud and stared at him, hard. Cloud stared back just as hard.

"This is your help?" Barrett said, "One of Shinra's pawns?" Cloud's stare became a glare.

"I have no ties with Shinra." Cloud sneered, "I haven't for the past 5 years."

"So ya were one of them SOLDIERs!" Barrett accused.

"Not anymore." Cloud sneered. Kairi flinched. Cloud had never sneered at anyone. But then, she realized what Cloud had said. He made it to SOLDIER. Kairi bit her tongue to keep from blurting out that Cloud had never made it. Kairi snapped back into the conversation.

"Barrett he's an old friend of Kai and me." Tifa said, "He'll help us." Barrett looked at Tifa and Tifa shot Barrett a 'this is important so just do it' glare. Barrett sighed,

"Alright but you're only gettin' 1000."

"5000." Cloud countered, his face cold and impassive.

"1500." Barrett sneered.

"5000." They continued in this way until Barrett finally agreed, although grudgingly.

"Relax Barrett." Kairi said, "We can always get more." Barrett muttered something about Cloud being Shinra scum before taking him down to explain the plan. Tifa walked over and opened the bar in order to keep suspicions off of the group. The first few rounds of customers were sane and relatively normal for the slums. But as it grew later, the usual drunks came in.

"You two better get upstairs." Tifa said, "It's getting late and I don't want you caught in the trouble they bring." Kairi nodded and took Marlene's hand. As they reached the stairs, the two girls turned back and called,

"Good night Tifa." Tifa smiled and gave the girls a small wave before returning to work. Kairi tucked Marlene in, like she did every night when Barrett was explaining one of his plans and trapped below the bar. Kairi smiled at the little girl as she whispered,

"Good night Marlene." Marlene yawned,

"Night Kai." Kairi smiled. Marlene was young and couldn't pronounce her name so she stuck to the nickname. Kairi made her way to her own room and as she fell asleep, she couldn't help thinking about how different Cloud was.

* * *

_Kairi opened her eyes to the sound of stones hitting her window. As she sat up in bed, she became aware of the increased heat of the house._

_ "What?" She whispered when it hit her. "Fire!" She cried and opened her window. Before she jumped however, she caught sight of the infantryman who had joined Zack and Sephiroth in Nibelheim. She shook it off and jumped. She tumbled through the air and landed on her knees only to roll off her shoulder. She stood up and gasped when she saw her house. It was engulfed in flames. "Grandma!" Kairi shouted, knowing her grandmother was lost. She ran around the back of her house, her pearl white staff in her hand, and gasped. The infantryman was lying in front of Cloud's house while Zangan helped a weak man. Quickly, Kairi ran over to Zangan and asked what was going on._

_ "Sephiroth did this." Zangan whispered as Zack ran up and asked where Tifa was. "She ran to the reactor." Zangan explained and tried to help the man._

_ "Here Kai." Zack said. He held a materia in his hand which he gave to Kairi, saying, "This will heal him." And then he ran off._

_ "Zack!" Kairi shouted and moved to follow him when Zangan grabbed her wrist._

_ "It's too dangerous." He reasoned. Kairi sighed and stared at the materia in her hand. She had never used it before. She put it in her arm like she'd seen Zack do and gasped as it went into her arm and glowed a soft green. She held her hand over the man when Zangan shook his head. "It's too late." Tears welled in Kairi's eyes when she heard a groan. She turned around and saw the infantryman. _He's still alive? _She thought as she ran over to him. She knelt beside him and hesitantly removed his helmet. She gasped as spiky blonde hair and a face she hadn't seen in years under the helmet._

_ "Cloud?" She whispered and her old friend groaned on hearing his name. Kairi stared at her arm and held it over Cloud. Green light flowed out of her arm and surrounded Cloud. She gasped as he opened his eyes. "Cloud." She whispered. The 16 year old stared at her and weakly whispered,_

_ "Kai." Kairi hugged him tightly then as tears fell hard down her cheeks._

_ "You came back." She whispered as Cloud immediately hugged her back just as tightly._

_ "Of course I did." He whispered. Kairi smiled and pulled back. But then, her face fell._

_ "Tifa…" She whispered. Cloud's face fell._

_ "Where is she?" He asked._

_ "The reactor." Instantly, Cloud shot up, grabbed his helmet and ran towards the reactor._

_ "Cloud!" Kairi cried and tried to follow when Zangan grabbed her._

_ "It's too dangerous!" He reasoned, while trying to knock sense into Kairi. Kairi pulled away and glared at the man. _

_ "I don't care!" She shouted, "I've lost my home, my grandmother and everything important to me here! I'm not gonna lose my friends too!" And she took off, pink and blue ribbons flashing on her left arm._

_ Kairi ran up the mountain, which was no easy task. Monsters seemed to pop up everywhere and she barely avoided them, healing herself repeatedly. Finally, the reactor was in sight. She gasped as she saw all the bodies. All of them had been killed by Sephiroth. More tears welled in her eyes as she recognized most of them, including Tifa's father._

_ "They're inside." She whispered and ran in. She found the group easily. Zack was collapsed on the stairs, Tifa was lying unconscious on the ground and Cloud was holding her, the Buster Sword beside him. Just then, Sephiroth limped out, holding a head. Kairi shied more into the shadows that hid her._

_ "By the likes of you." Sephiroth managed to sneer at Cloud. Kairi's eyes widened. That was not the calm general she had helped Tifa guide up the mountain._

_ "Cloud…" Zack said, "Finish…him off." Cloud nodded, laid Tifa down and picked up the Buster Sword. He walked over to the stairs, held the sword in both hands and screamed,_

_ "SEPHIROTH!" Cloud jumped up and somehow skipped all the stairs to collide with Sephiroth's Masume. Sephiroth threw Cloud back into the room he had left and as soon as they vanished, Kairi ran over to Tifa. She checked for a pulse. She sighed in relief. Tifa was alive. Kairi turned to Zack and ran over to him, checking his pulse as well. He was alive as well. Suddenly, she heard Cloud cry out in pain and grunting. Before she could follow, Cloud walked out, dragging the Buster Sword, and collapsed next to Zack._

_ "You did it Cloud." Zack managed as he lost consciousness._

_ "Cloud!" Kairi cried. She ran over to him to find him barely conscious. She picked up his head and cradled it._

_ "Kairi…" He whispered. Kairi listened closely as tears began to form again. "Take care of Tifa." Kairi nodded as one of her tears slid off her cheek and landed on Cloud's._

_ "I will." She vowed between sobs, "I promise." Cloud smiled a little before he slipped into unconsciousness as well. Kairi's tears fell harder as she checked his pulse. It was still there. Kairi took out her knife; Tifa had insisted she have at least two weapons on her, and cut a strip of Cloud's green-gray piece and tied it around her left arm. Right under the blue. Kairi continued to sob when Zangan walked in._

_ "Kairi!" He whispered harshly as he picked up Tifa, "Come on." Kairi nodded and laid Cloud's head back on the stairs. She picked up her staff and took the materia out of her arm. She placed it in her pocket along with the other materia she collected on the way up before following Zangan. As they made their way down the mountain, Zangan turned back and said, "I hope they make it out." Kairi nodded as her tears continued to fall. After that day, she vowed to never cry unless it was something terrible._

* * *

Kairi woke up breathing heavily. She had been 10 at the time and had lost everything but her promise to Cloud, Zack's materia and Tifa. Zangan had left when Tifa had turned 18 saying he needed to get out of the city. It had been a year later that AVALANCHE had recruited the two girls and Tifa had bought Seventh Heaven. Kairi shook her head and threw on her usual outfit. As she came into the bar, Kairi noticed Cloud was the only other one up and he was outside. Kairi followed him and quietly approached. He was kneeling one the ground, the Buster Sword touching his forehead as if he was praying. His body was shaking, like he was trying to keep control.

"Embrace your dreams." He whispered, "And no matter what happens…never forget you honor as SOLDIER."

"That's what I said before I died." Zack whispered through the breeze as if in awe. Kairi placed a hand on Cloud's shoulder. He looked up and Kairi gasped quietly. Tears could be seen in his mako blue eyes.

"Cloud…" Kairi whispered when Cloud blinked and the tears vanished. He immediately stood up and swung the Buster Sword on his back.

"What is it?" Cloud asked, his voice monotone.

"Nothing." Kairi answered hurriedly and stared down at the ground. Cloud shrugged and walked inside as if nothing had happened. But Kairi knew differently. She had just seen the real Cloud peek through for just a little bit and maybe…for the last time.

* * *

**Okay that's the chapter. Thanks to every reader and if you review I'll thank you personally here. Okay hopefully this fills in any holes you were wondering about and I'll fill in more as the story continues. I'm also gonna be very careful with Barrett. I don't swear so the way I'm getting around it is typing it differently. Wish me luck and please review. Later.**


	3. Chapter 3: Missions Gone Right and Wrong

Kairi sighed. Barrett, Biggs, Wedge, Jessie and Cloud had left a while ago. Tifa had closed the bar early so nobody would catch them going into the hidden room below the bar. Kairi sat at a table while Tifa prepared food for the group when they returned and Marlene was standing near Kairi.

"Are you sad?" Marlene asked. Kairi turned to the 4 year old and smiled,

"No I'm just bored." Marlene cocked her head to the side.

"Why?" She asked.

"Because I have nothing to do." Kairi answered with a small smile. Marlene nodded though she didn't look convinced when the door to the bar opened. Biggs, Wedge and Jessie walked in and sat down at the table.

"Was it a success?" Tifa asked.

"Yep." Jessie answered with a smile as Biggs and Wedge began to eat. Just then, Cloud walked in.

"Papa!" Marlene cried. She ran towards Cloud but she noticed he wasn't Barrett and ran to a corner. Tifa walked over and kneelt in front of Marlene and said,

"Marlene! Aren't you going to say anything to Cloud?" Marlene shook her head. Tifa sighed and stood up. Marlene ran after the woman and climbed onto her back. Kairi giggled softly from her table. "Welcome home Cloud." Tifa smiled, "Looks like everything went well." Kairi looked down at the table. She hated how they went about things. They destroyed mako reactors and have killed people in the process. Her home was destroyed once and now she was part of a group that did the same thing though unintentionally. "Did you fight with Barrett?" Tifa asked.

"Not this time." Cloud answered. Kairi stood up and walked over to stand beside Tifa.

"You've grown up." She stated.

"When you were little you used to get into fights at the drop of a hat." Tifa said. It was then that Kairi noticed the flowers in Cloud's hand. She gasped quietly and took a step back. She helped Marlene down from Tifa's back in order to make it look intentional. She'd only seen those flowers in one place and tended for by one person.

_ Can she be alive? _Kairi thought.

"Flowers? How nice…" Tifa smiled, "You almost never see them here in the slums. But…a flower for me? Oh Cloud, you shouldn't have…"

"No big." Cloud said and gave it to Tifa.

"Thank you Cloud." Tifa smiled, "It smells wonderful." As she put it on the counter, Tifa said thoughtfully, "Maybe I should fill the store with flowers." Just then, Barrett ran in. Cloud jumped to a table to stay out of the way while Kairi leant against the bar counter.

"Papa, welcome home!" Marlene cried in joy. Barrett turned and picked up his little girl. Kairi smiled. When Barrett was with Marlene, it was as if he was a different person. He went from a Shinra hating terrorist to a loving father in less than a minute.

"You alright Barrett?" Tifa asked.

"Great!" Barrett cried, "Get in here fools! We're starting the meeting!" Barrett then walked over to the pinball machine and went down followed by Biggs, Wedge and Jessie. Tifa walked behind the bar and asked,

"You going Kai?" Kairi looked down and whispered,

"Not yet." Tifa nodded in understanding. Kairi had confessed long ago to not like how AVALANCHE did things. She didn't like hurting innocent people. Not too long ago, she was a victim of that as well. Cloud walked over to the bar and stared at Tifa.

"Sit down." Tifa said and Cloud did so. "How about something to drink?" Tifa asked.

"Give me something hard." Cloud answered.

"Just a minute. I'll make you one." Tifa said and began making the drink. Kairi sighed. Tifa didn't like her around drinks and was using it as a sign.

"I'm heading down." She said and made her way to the room.

"Where's Tifa and Spiky?" Barrett asked as she landed on the floor.

"Upstairs. Tifa's making Cloud a drink." Kairi answered. The group nodded. They all knew Tifa didn't want Kairi around drinks until she was 20 only because drunks could be rough and even though Kairi could protect herself, Tifa didn't want to take the risk. Minutes later, Cloud came down.

"Yo Cloud! There's somethin' I wanna ask ya." Barrett said, "Was there anyone from SOLDIER fighting us today?" Cloud thought for a moment before shaking his head and crossing his arms.

"None. I'm positive." He answered.

"You sound pretty sure." Barrett remarked. Cloud turned to Barrett and said,

"If there was anyone from SOLDIER you wouldn't be standing here right now." Cloud stated matter-of-factly.

"Don't go think' you so bad jes cuz you was in SOLDIER." Barrett warned. He then tried to attack Cloud. Miraculously, Biggs and Kairi were able to hold the bigger man back. Cloud said nothing and Barrett managed to throw Biggs into the air and Kairi to the ground. "Yeah you're strong." Barrett said, "Probably all them guys in SOLDIER are. But don't forget that your skinny ass's workin' for AVALANCHE now!"

"Barrett!" Kairi cried, "Don't curse around Marlene!" Barrett ignored her and continued,

"Don't get no ideas 'bout hangin' on to Shinra." Cloud turned to the big man.

"Staying with Shinra? You asked me a question and I answered it…that's all." Cloud said. He walked closer to Barrett and said, "I'm going upstairs. I want to talk about my money." As Cloud began to make his way to the lift, Tifa came down and she ran over to him as did Kairi.

"Wait Cloud!" Tifa said.

"Please!" Kairi whispered. She couldn't handle losing him. She just couldn't.

"Tifa! Kairi! Let him go!" Barrett said, "Looks like he still misses Shinra!" Cloud turned then and shouted,

"Shut up!" Kairi stared at him. She had seen Cloud get into fights before and they were usually like this. Someone was making fun of him, he turned and shouted shut up and they began to fight.

_Maybe he's still in there. _She thought.

"I don't care about either Shinra or SOLDIER!" Cloud continued. He began to walk away when he turned back and said, quieter than the last time he spoke, "Don't get me wrong. I don't care about AVALANCHE or the Planet for that matter." Kairi gasped and covered her mouth. The Cloud she knew had always cared about his friends and him saying he didn't care about the Planet either just wasn't right. Cloud turned and went back up with the lift. Tifa shared a look with Kairi and both immediately went up when they had the chance. They ran up to Cloud and Tifa spoke first.

"Listen Cloud." She said, "I'm asking you. Please join us."

"Please." Kairi whispered. Cloud shook his head and walked away a little ways before saying,

"Sorry Tifa, Kairi." Tifa followed Cloud and said,

"The Planet is dying. Slowly but surely it's dying."

"Someone has to do something." Kairi added. Cloud turned around and shrugged at his childhood friends.

"So let Barrett and his buddies do something about it." He said, "It's got nothin' to do with me." He turned around and just before he was out the door, Tifa called,

"So! You're really leaving!? You're just going to walk right out ignoring your childhood friends!?" Cloud turned around.

"What…..? How can you say that!" He said. Tifa looked down.

"…You forgot the promise, too." She said as she looked Cloud in the eyes. Kairi held her breath. Tifa had told her about the promise she and Cloud made before he left. This was a true test for him.

"Promise?" Cloud asked, confused. Tifa looked down.

"So you DID forget." She said and then walked closer to Cloud and stared into his mako eyes. "Remember…Cloud. It was seven years ago…" Cloud crossed his arms and looked up, remembering. When he looked down, he stared right into Tifa's eyes. "You remember now, don't you…our promise?" Cloud shook his head.

"I'm not a hero and I'm not famous. I can't keep…the promise." He said. Kairi stepped closer.

"What about our promise Cloud?" Cloud stared at the younger girl.

"What?" He asked. Kairi sighed,

"Don't you remember? It was the night after your promise with Tifa…"

* * *

_Kairi climbed down a vine near her window to the ground. Once she set her feet down, she turned and ran towards the center of the town. Sitting under the water tower was Cloud. He stood up when Kairi ran over._

"_You made it…" He whispered._

"_Of course I did." Kairi smiled, "You're one of my best friends." Cloud smiled and pointed up._

"_Let's climb up." He suggested. Once at the top, Cloud took a deep breath and said, "I'm leaving for Midgar this spring, Kai." Kairi turned to him and cocked her head to the side._

"_Why?" She asked._

"_I want to join SOLDIER." Cloud said, "I want to be a hero like Sephiroth." Kairi looked down at her hands._

"_Will you ever come back?" She asked. Cloud sat down beside her and put an arm across her shoulders._

"_I don't know." He said. Kairi looked him straight in his blue eyes and smiled,_

"_Then promise me you'll come back and protect me."_

"_What?" Cloud asked._

"_Promise me you'll come back and protect me. Like a big brother." Kairi said. Cloud thought about it for a moment then nodded,_

"_I promise."_

"_With your heart?" Kairi asked, leaning closer to his face. Cloud laughed slightly. Kairi made everyone promise like that. She was only 8 and took promises seriously. Cloud smiled,_

"_I promise with my heart." Kairi smiled and hugged him tightly._

"_I'll miss you…Big Brother." Cloud looked down at her, confused. Kairi's smile widened, "It's my new nickname for you." Cloud laughed slightly and hugged her just as tightly as she hugged him._

* * *

"What happened to you…Big Brother?" Kairi whispered as Cloud looked down and didn't say a word.

"But you got your childhood dream, didn't you? You joined SOLDIER." Tifa stated. Cloud scratched the back of his neck as Tifa and Kairi backed off. "So come on! You've got to keep your promises…" Just then, Barrett climbed up the shaft of the secret lift.

"Wait a sec big-time-SOLDIER!" He said. Tifa and Kairi walked out of the way as Barrett continued, "A promise is a promise! Here!" Barrett threw the gil on the ground and Cloud bent down to pick it up. It was 1500 gil.

"This is my pay?" Cloud said, "Don't make me laugh."

"What?" Tifa cried, "Then you'll…!"

"Tifa…" Kairi whispered to her older friend.

"You got the next mission lined up? I'll do it for 3000." Cloud said.

"What!?" Barrett cried.

"It's ok, it's ok." Tifa said, "We're really hurting for help, right?"

"And it's less than what he asked for last time." Kairi whispered.

"Ugh…ugh…that money's for Marlene's schoolin'…" Barrett whispered. He began to make his way to the shaft and turned back to cry, "2000!" Tifa walked over to Cloud and smiled,

"Thanks Cloud."

"You're really helping us out." Kairi added.

* * *

The next morning, Tifa, Marlene, Barrett and Kairi were waiting upstairs for Cloud. Marlene was pacing behind the bar, Kairi was leaning against it, Barrett was tapping his foot impatiently and Tifa stood there waiting. Finally, Cloud's chocobo spikes came into view.

"Good morning! Cloud!" Tifa greeted, "Did you sleep well?"

"Next to you, who wouldn't?" Cloud responded.

"I don't know what you mean." Tifa said, "I'm going this time."

"Our target's the Sector 5 reactor. Head for the station first." Barrett instructed, "I'll fill you in on the train." Then, Barrett said, "Yo! Cloud! Before the next mission, I got somethin' I wanna ask you! I us…I don't really know how to use materia!" Kairi shook her head.

"I could've taught you." She said.

"I give you that materia you found. Just tell me how to use it!" Barrett said, completely ignoring Kairi. Cloud sighed,

"…Okay I'll explain it…" After Cloud explained it, he said, "It wasn't that tough."

"Shi….What's this 'it wasn't that tough' crap!" Barrett cried, "I'm clueless…Well you handle the materia then!" Tifa turned then.

"Cloud! I have a message from the Weapon Shop man downstairs. He has something he wants to give you. Don't forget!" She said and turned to Kairi and Marlene. "Marlene, Kairi, you watch the store while we're gone!"

"No problem, Teef." Kairi said, using Tifa's rarely used nickname. Tifa hated it. Kairi smiled, "Sorry, it just slipped out."

"Good luck!" Marlene called as the trio left. They came back hours later, Tifa looked shocked.

"What's wrong?" Kairi asked. Tifa shook her head and went upstairs. Kairi turned to the others.

"Cloud fell off the reactor." Barrett said. Kairi gasped when she remembered something. The church was in Sector 5. Maybe, just maybe, Cloud got lucky.

* * *

**That's all for now. Thanks to every reader and to AurraWings and floramariaclark for reviewing and following and favoring. Okay so I did do the swearing but it couldn't be helped. Anyways, I just got back from vacation and I still have 4 other stories so don't expect fast updates. You got more of Kairi's past and you'll get more soon! Thanks again! Please review and let me know if this is good. Also I'm following the dialogue as best as I can if you haven't noticed so I'll be watching a play through while writing so yeah. Later.**


End file.
